World Cup Qualifying Standout Stats

After spending a week discussing which national team Adnan Januzaj should play for, we finally had actual football to talk about on Friday as World Cup qualifying matches were played across the globe, with plenty of standout statistics along the way.

The main storyline from Friday's matches was the qualification of Belgium, Germany, Switzerland and Colombia for the 2014 FIFA World Cup.

Those four nations will join 10 other countries that have already booked their spot in the greatest sporting spectacle on Earth.

Here is a look at some of the best standout stats that stuck out to fans across the globe on Friday.

RVP Passes Patrick Kluivert

In Holland's 8-1 mauling of Hungary in UEFA Group D play, Robin van Persie became the all-time leading goalscorer in Dutch history:

Buffon eclipsed his former teammate Fabio Cannavaro, who appeared in 136 matches from 1997 to 2010.

The 35-year-old keeper made his first appearance for Italy back in October 1997 in a World Cup qualifying playoff against Russia.

In a quote translated by Kyle Bonn of Pro Soccer Talk, Buffon said of his record-breaking cap to the Italian Football Federation website, "The national team is a reference point for me, it’s the most beautiful expression of our football."

Germany Qualifies for 16th Straight World Cup

With their dominant 3-0 win in Cologne over the Republic of Ireland, Germany punched their ticket to Brazil next summer:

In the process of doing just that, the Germans extended the second-longest qualification streak in the world to 16.

The only nation to qualify for the World Cup on more consecutive occasions than Die Mannschaft? Well, that would be 2014 hosts Brazil with 20.

Goal Differential Becoming Prominent Again

With just one match left for the teams involved in UEFA World Cup qualifying, the ever-present statistic of goal differential is being mentioned often in conversations.

As we all know by now, goal differential is the first tiebreaker when it comes determining the winners and second-place finishers in each group.

While it may not affect the group winners much, goal differential will affect the race to make the playoffs in Europe.

In Group B, four teams are within one point of each other with Bulgaria holding the slight advantage over Denmark for second place. Both teams are tied with 13 points, while the Czech Republic and Armenia both have 12 points.

For the Danes to overtake Bulgaria for second place, they will need to beat Malta at home on Tuesday and hope that Bulgaria either lose to or draw with the Czech Republic in Sofia.

Claudio Villa/Getty Images

If all of that happens, Denmark do not have to worry about making up seven goals, but if Bulgaria win and the Danes do not outscore their adversaries by eight goals, all hope will be lost for Morten Olsen's side.

Four other groups—D, E, F and H—could see goal differential decide their second-place finisher and playoff qualifier as well.

Rooney Hitting Stride When England Need Him the Most

With his 48th-minute opener against Montenegro, Wayne Rooney continued his stellar goal-scoring form for England.

In his last five World Cup qualifying matches, Rooney has bagged six goals for the Three Lions:

6 - Wayne Rooney has netted six goals in his last five World Cup qualifiers. Update.

Those six goals have put Rooney atop the scoring leaderboard in UEFA Group H, where he stands two goals ahead of a quartet of players that includes two of his teammates: Frank Lampard and Danny Welbeck.

Colombia, Belgium End World Cup Droughts

While they may be separated by the Atlantic Ocean on a map, the celebrations in Colombia and Belgium on Friday night were the same as the two nations ended their respective World Cup droughts.

Belgium, which had not been to the World Cup since 2002, clinched qualification to Brazil early in the day with a 2-1 victory over Croatia in which Romelu Lukaku scored twice:

Belgium has clinched a 2014 World Cup spot ... will make first WC appearance since 2002

Two penalties from Radamel Falcao powered Jose Pekerman's side to a valuable point against a Chile side that looked dominant in the first half.

United States Lock Up First Place in CONCACAF

After 77 minutes of groggy, disappointing play in front of their home fans at Sporting Park in Kansas City, the United States woke up and put two goals past Jamaica in the final minutes of their CONCACAF World Cup qualifying match.

With the victory, the already qualified Yanks secured first place in the hexagonal round of CONCACAF qualifying.

The clean sheet kept by Tim Howard also meant that the Americans did not concede a single goal at home in the Hex:

In last 5 cycles, #USMNT is the 3rd team not to allow a home goal in the final round (2006 U.S., 1998 Jamaica).